5 replies to this topic

[NDP]

Here's something I do not understand...

Vesper is in love with Bond, saves and betrays Bond and dies in Casino Royale. Vesper also apparently saved her boyfriend as seen at the end of Quantum of Solace.

I am not understanding the boyfriends involvement in Quantum of Solace. Did I miss something? What was the discussion between Bond and Vesper's former boyfriend? Is the boyfriend dead? Did Bond kill him?

Thanks to all those that reply.

[MattofSteel]

Yusef was in on it with Quantum the entire time. He's a Quantum "agent." His kidnapping by the organization was staged to "fake" blackmail Vesper into working for them, against Bond.

At the end of QoS, Bond interrupted his efforts to convert a Canadian female agent in a situation similar to Vesper. She was the "new" Vesper he was working on.

Bond did not kill him, as his nature over the film had changed and he buried his own bloodthirst for revenge (so to speak) in an effort to see the big picture. He realized Yusef was simply worth far more to MI6 alive.

[K1Bond007]

Vesper's boyfriend was a recruiter for Quantum so to speak. He gets involved with girls that are in intelligence (in QoS, the girl was Canadian Intelligence, Vesper was with the Treasury) and then once the girl falls for him he gets "kidnapped" and Quantum blackmails the girl to do their bidding or .. he dies. Of course it's just an act. He merely moves on to the next target.

Bond told M he didn't kill him.

[Captain Tightpants]

Yusuf is a honeytrap, a tactic that was used during the Cold War. The easiest way to get a source of information on the other side of the Iron Curtain was to find someone with something embarrassing about them - ie a closet homosexual, or an alcoholic - and then blackmail them into doing your bidding.

The other way was to place an agent of your own in their lives, someone who would pretend to fall in love with them and manipulate them. By the time the target worked out what was going on, they were already in under their head. This is what Yusuf does: he finds people like Vesper and Corinne and professes his love for them - he even gives them a loveknot necklace - and buys into their loyalty. As Quantum proved with Vesper, they can then blackmail their unwitting agent by pretending to threaten the life of Yusuf, when he's really in on the whole thing.

[Gobi-1]

I guess you could call Yusef a "talent scout" for Quantum. He finds female government agents, spies, operatives, etc. and lures them into a romance. Once he's gained their trust he stages a fake abduction so Quantum can blackmail the female operative to do their bidding or their boyfriend "dies."

He's a player.

I'd imagine that Quantum has a femme fatale who charms male government agents as well.

[NDP]

Now I understand! Thanks to everyone who responded.